Abstract: Habitat suitability assessment is of great significance for wildlife conservation and nature reserve management. To understand the habitat condition of wild alpine musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster) in Xinglongshan National Nature Reserve, infrared cameras were utilized to collect the distribution data of wild alpine musk deer from September to November in 2021. With the topography, NDVI, distance from rivers and distance from roads as environmental variables, we evaluated the habitat suitability of wild alpine musk deer in autumn by MaxEnt model. The results showed that NDVI, distance from roads, distance from rivers, and elevation were the main factors influencing the suitability of autumn habitat of wild alpine musk deer in the reserve, with the contributions of 33.20%, 22.70%, 16.70% and 14.60%, respectively. The area of potential autumn suitability of wild alpine musk deer in the reserve was 75.22 km², accounting for 26.13% of the reserve area. The highly suitable area was mainly distributed in the northwestern and southeastern areas of the reserve, accounting for 3.26% of the reserve area. This study quantified the distribution of suitable habitats in autumn and key environmental impact factors of wild alpine musk deer in the reserve, which can benefit the conservation and habitat management of the wild alpine musk deer.

Key words: alpine musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster), Xinglongshan National Nature Reserve, MaxEnt, habitat suitability, autumn